I Don't Learn That Way: Visual

Differentiated learning has swept the nation, and we should all be really happy about that. Hopefully, gone are the days when young students sit at a desk, write down notes, listen to a lecture and call it a day. At eight years old, this is the last thing kids want to be doing, which in turn, makes them resent school. Education is now moving into creating a learning environment that benefits all different students and learning styles. The different learning styles that most people are used to hearing are VARK: visual, auditory, read/write, and kinesthetic. Over the next few blog posts, I’ll be going through different strategies to use for these learning styles.

VISUAL

Visual learners need, of course, visual stimuli. For example, instead of orally spelling out a word and ask them to write it down, write the word on the board for them while calling out the letters so they can see it, and better understand. Instead of discussing a historical event (students are sitting in a circle, listening to the teacher tell them about the event), mix discussion with a video, or a PowerPoint with pictures to better get your message across. Here are a few more good tips for your visual students:

Flash cards: although this may sound boring and overused, we shouldn’t forget that flash cards could be used for a variety of subjects and lessons. We don’t only use flash cards for learning numbers or the alphabet and new vocabulary; you can use them through creating a matching game, true or false or even fact or myth. Flash cards can be used for multiple grade levels, and has proven to be very effective for visual learners.

Videos: we don’t want to overstep our video boundaries. Students love videos, and it can be viewed as a break from learning in which they can zone out and relax. What I have used are short YouTube videos that match my lesson, and add to the learning- it is not the primary source. Pausing the videos and creating short discussions in between are also a good strategy.

Colour coding: this can be extremely important when teaching math. Colour coding your numbers, equations- whatever it may be, will be more appealing and create better understanding with your visual students.

Pictures: don’t think about basic pictures, but take this to another level. You can create comic strips, poster boards or even by using the white board. Diagrams and graphs are also a great tool to use.

Anchor charts: having charts around your room, for example, of key words, sentences, number charts or steps towards a goal, will increase the likelihood of your visual student independently using those techniques and strategies. By having a list of steps that will lead a student to independent reading, your visual student will be able to follow them as they can see them up on the wall as a daily reminder.

One great tool to use for drawings and visuals is Google Drawings. Everything you create is saved on Google Drive and can be accessed anywhere, anytime. You can also get students involved by adding them into the document, where they can edit and add their own work.